


The Wizard of Imagination Land

by nyahchatnoir



Category: Inside Out (2015), Pixar - Fandom, inside out
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, F/M, Multi, Quest, Romance, Slapstick
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-29
Updated: 2015-06-29
Packaged: 2018-04-06 17:24:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4230459
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nyahchatnoir/pseuds/nyahchatnoir
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Inside Out AU. Mindy Test (Disgust) moves to San Francisco and is angry at her parents for stealing her old life. What will she do when a random cyclone comes and steals her away from her new one? A joyful scarecrow might just be able to help her... All they have to do is follow a little brick road and catch a train, right? Easy. Some Joy/Fear. Possible Disgust/Anger & Sadness/Bing Bong. UP FOR ADOPTION TO ANYONE WHO WANTS IT!!!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Moving Day

**Author's Note:**

> This is an AU that coincides with the story 'The Wizard of Oz' about 50%. So there will be a lot of recognized scenes but with my own little Inside Out spin on things. I hope that you enjoy it and want to stick around for the rest!
> 
> Inside Out belongs to Disney & Pixar, while The Wizard of Oz belongs to L. Frank Baum & Metro-Golden-Mayer.

The sun was hot, and Mindy Test was sweaty as she stared up at the New York-styled apartment in front of her. The prissy teen let out a long moan of frustration. A pink manicured hand immediately moved downward to cock against her hip. She turned around to glare defiantly up at her parents. 

“Mom, Dad,” she asked, giving them a dirty look, “Why did we have to move away from the comforts of Florida? And to San Francisco of all places? I mean, ugh, the taste of the broccoli pizza that we had earlier is still in my mouth. Frankly, why anyone would ever want to put any of that nasty old, disgusting and moldy broccoli on a perfectly good Italian pizza is beyond me. Good going San Francisco, you figured out a way to ruin pizza. Honestly!”

Hopping out of the moving van, Mrs. Test gave her daughter a patient smile. She threw her daughter the last of her bags and gently shooed her towards the house.

“Aw, come on now. Go on and check out the house, it can’t be that bad. The apartment number is A113. Be gentle with the knob, though, we’re getting it replaced soon. Besides, a new start will be good for you. Think positively, baby.”

Grumbling under her breath, Mindy rolled her eyes, but took the bag from her mother with a small thank you. She then walked toward the front door of their apartment building with her father and waited until her mother was done talking with the driver who had been sent by the moving company. It was a long moment of awkward silence and staring between both father and daughter, before her mother finally appeared beside them carrying a box of big crystal glassware. 

Mindy rolled her eyes once more, as her mother gave them a large smile, happily shifting the box in her grasp. Mr. Test immediately opened the building’s entrance. He held the door open for them, and the trio of newbies made it through the front door one by one. Soon they were standing at the foot of the stairs and slowly, letting out a light sigh, the three Tests began lugging up the last of their baggage. 

“Why doesn’t this place have an elevator?” Mindy complained.

She glanced back at her mother from over her shoulder.

“Because it doesn’t have an elevator,” Ms. Test easily answered.

“Ew, and why would you choose somewhere that doesn’t have an elevator?”

Her mother frowned, “Honey-”

“Darling, don’t mess with your mother.”

Mindy sighed and mumbled an apology. The sixteen year old led her parents onto the third floor where their new apartment would be and blindly stuck a hand out to take the key away from her mother. A curt nod followed Ms. Test dropping the metal into Mindy’s fingers. Her daughter was not usually this cross, but the effect of moving had taken a toll on her, and she was acting far worse than her usual pampered self. To her, moving had been nothing but a personal attack against her, and an attempt to ruin her life and the popularity that she had built around herself throughout high school. She had been cool in the other kid’s eyes; a fashion icon for teenagers everywhere. The fact that she was still an adolescent with much to learn about the world, an idea she fiercely denied, did nothing to help her current emotional state. Basically, she was mad, and she was damned sure to take it out on her parents.

Stabbing at the doorknob with the key to their apartment, Mindy glared up at the number on the door. A113; the number that would probably haunt her dreams. It was the number that she would have to see literally every single day of the rest of her life, at least, that is how she made it out to be at the time in her mind. The girl let out a noise of contempt and flicked the key to the left. The lock within the knob clicked open, and she quickly placed her hand on the cool metal. The feel of it, cold to the touch, brought her to a sudden halt. A thick lump settled in her throat.

“You excited?” her mother wondered, already knowing that her daughter was definitely not excited. Still, it had been a fair attempt at making her smile and instilling a small sense of joy. Too bad it had been for naught.

Sighing to herself, Mindy threw open the apartment door and shifted the bag over her shoulder. She silently stepped inside, only to pause on the second step and gaze around at their surroundings. Her eyes almost bugged out in distaste. The lump plunged down from her throat into her gut.

“This is our apartment?” she eventually squeaked up to her parents.

A grunt of confirmation from her father met her ears.

Her mother grinned, as she placed down the box of glassware. She nodded. The look of uncontained surprise on her daughter’s face amused her greatly.

“Home sweet home!”

Mindy subconsciously shook her head and took a couple of hesitant steps further into the apartment. She held onto the bag on her shoulder tightly, as her father began to dutifully shove boxes from the hallway into their flat.

Cheerfully, her mother continued on, “So what if it’s a fixer upper? So it’s got a few bugs-”

“AHHH!” Mindy screamed, almost falling backwards on her ass, as she ran away from a nearby corner. 

Her mother blinked in surprise and felt a frown come upon her brow. 

“-And rats, apparently. Well, that is certainly enough Frozen for one day. God forbid the next thing you’ll tell me is that we have Sebastian the crab in our toilet.”

“Ew. Ugh Mom, can you please stop making Disney references? I am currently freaking out over dead mice here, you know.”

“Oh. Right. Well, don’t worry your pretty little head about it. Your father and I will take care of it, so you can go on into your room if you want to go and check it out. Your room is the second door on the right down… um, that hallway.” 

Her mother pointed down a dimly lit hallway and gave Mindy a sympathetic smile. Overall, she could understand why her daughter was feeling so upset about the move. If anything, her mother would have been just as mad as a teenager, if not more so, if she had been the one in her daughter’s shoes. Mindy’s parents had taken her away from everything that she had ever known, and their daughter had lost everything that she had created for herself back at their old home. Her entire life had been taken away from her. All of her beautifully tanned friends and all of the hot boys that she was just beginning to find an interest in; her entire social bubble had been left behind in the sunny orange state, and that thought in itself pissed her daughter off more than anything. 

Walking away, Mindy grumbled under her breath and stomped silently at the floorboards beneath her. As she deftly tossed open the door to her new bedroom, she made a frown and nibbled softly at her bottom lip, wordlessly taking in her surroundings.

Nothing but a bare room with a bare bedframe met her gaze. It made her sick to her stomach. Letting out a loud groan of annoyance, she fell down to her knees and pulled them in to sit Indian style on the cold tile floor. A tired hand reached into the pocket of her shorts, and she pulled out her cellphone. Her fingers expertly flipped it open to reveal her image gallery. A lone tear settled in the very corner of her eye, as she stared down at the pixelated screen in front of her. Nothing but a still frame of a memory and a bunch of people who would have probably already forgotten about her by now. The thought of that made her sad… but that was how living in Florida was; how it always had been. It was almost what she imagined living in New York would feel like; amazing, yet oh so very lonely.

Dammit all! 

Suddenly, a bolt of anger shot from her head, straight into the very core of her heart. It took all of the self-control that the girl had inside of her to restrain herself from throwing her phone out of frustration, as she sat on the unfeeling floor shaking with a muted rage. It was like a fire had been set within her, and she was more than willing to add fuel to it. Her entire life had been taken away from her. What had been hers for a total of sixteen years had been stolen from her in an instance. All of her friends and memories; gone in a flash. In her opinion, a lot of time had been spent on her becoming popular, and where had all of that effort gotten her? San-Freaking-Cisco: the land where pizza is served with nothing but broccoli as a topping. No pepperonis or beef or ham, just broccoli. Yuck!

Mindy shuddered from her spot on the floor. Suddenly, she felt exhaustingly tired and completely unwilling to fight anymore. All of her fight had been lost on the drive leaving Florida.

As Mindy leant back to rest against the hard tile beneath her, another tear fell down her cheek. She curled in her legs beneath her. The girl’s arms rested drowsily under her head, and she thought about her friends. A small curse fell out as a whisper across her lips. They had all been planning on taking a trip to the beach before the move was rescheduled for two weeks earlier than the original date... Too bad their trip together would never happen now. 

Mindy hastily squeezed her eyes shut. The thought of her friends ever being able to move on without her and leaving her behind hurt her far more than she would probably like to admit. Her heart sunk like a stone. A few more tears escaped through her lashes, before she sniffled, fully exhausted, and tiredly laid her face into the crook of her arm, shielding her eyes from the harsh light of day. Nothing made her feel better at this moment than to be surrounded by the cool shadow that was created by her own skin. It was the only thing that felt safe to her, so much like home, and the girl felt comforted by the softness of her own embrace. The thought of it was terribly sad, but true, and she gave herself a gentle squeeze.

As Mindy breathed deeply into her skin, a small sentence left her lips.

Slowly, she fell asleep. It was with one last thought that she lost consciousness; a mental curse that made a mockery of all of her parents’ decisions. God, they could be so stupid. With that thought, the girl decided then and there that she would continue to hate San Francisco for as long as she wanted. She was determined to never like it. Yes, that was exactly what she would do. Hating it would surely teach her parents to never -potentially- ruin her life again. Once she woke up, Mindy would run into the living room, and brood and complain until her parents absolutely regretted moving from the wonderful state of Florida to the boring, old state of San Francisco. It was the only just punishment that her parents deserved.

Taking in a deep breath, Mindy settled more comfortably into the crook of her arm and let out a small sigh of contentment. The tears on her cheeks were just beginning to dry. A wave of sleepiness washed over her, and it calmed all of her senses, weighing down her body until it was almost impossible for her to even open her eyes. With a soft breath, her lips murmured wordlessly. Not a single sound came from her. As her chest continued to move up and down lightly, it was a short moment of gentle lulling before she finally managed to fall asleep.


	2. The Welcoming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a twister comes and things happen. Enjoy!

The first thing she felt was wind on her face. The second was a leaf smacking her in the eye.

“Ow!”

Mindy threw up a hand and tenderly rubbed at her eye. She frowned delicately as she squinted, a single tear of pain now forming at the edge of it. Mentally, she shook her head at herself at the few, left over dried streaks that her tears from earlier had gifted her. They were two small trails that went down both of her cheeks.   
It was a long moment, before she suddenly realized that the wind was beginning to grow fiercer. A thin shiver racked through her body.  
As Mindy laid on the floor, she lazily called out, “Mom you left my window open!”

Nothing but silence met her call.

Grumbling to herself in mild annoyance, Mindy sighed deeply. 

She yelled again, “Mom, didn’t you hear me?”

When her mother failed to answer a second time, a cold feeling settled in the pit of Mindy’s gut. Suddenly, the hands that were beneath her head subconsciously tightened in fear. Soon, she realized that the only sound meeting her ears was the roar of the ever-growing wind outside. A purse of the lips was her only response. Ever carefully, she opened her eyes only to have them shoot wide open in surprise, as she unexpectedly found herself flying in the middle of a large tornado. A vulgar scream instantly erupted from her lips.

“W-What…”

A panicked expression settled over her face, and she quickly began turning on her knees. All she saw was the jagged sight of ripped wires and wall plaster, and the terrifying view of a darkening twister through a large gap in her wall. A ball of regret instantly entered her gut. No, no, no. This was not what she had wanted. Looking around her, it was as if her entire room had been picked up and stolen away from San Francisco.  
Mindy promptly gasped. San Francisco!

The girl immediately let a swear roll off her tongue. Hurriedly moving on her knees toward the window of her bedroom, she fought off the urge to fall over from the extreme weight of the wind that was gushing into her. As she neared her window, Mindy struggled to land her palms on the edge of her window seal. Grasping it firmly, she gradually managed to pull herself onto her feet, but almost felt the urge to cry when a random stick came flying into the room only to quickly graze her face. Another exclamation of pain escaped her.

Blinking through her unshed tears, Mindy reached up to wipe at her face, as she gazed horrified into the distance. Her other hand had a death grip on the window’s ledge. It was far away and down below, amongst the crazy and hazy grey of the ever-blackening tornado carrying her aloft that the town of San Francisco, California sat.

“... Can I say that one cuss word, now?”

Mindy let out a cry, holding on tightly, as the bedroom suddenly shook midflight and started to spin unnaturally. Staring out the window, she saw a cat meowing in fright as it tried to walk along the twirling gusts of air. Below it, a dog sat, uncaringly being carried away as it chewed at the underside of its belly. Trees, rocks, and various other debris circled around her. Amongst the cyclone, a trash can followed behind the animals, accompanied soon by a tall woman riding a bicycle. On her head sat a head full of long brown hair, and on her face was a pair of dark eyes that pierced her soul. The ringing of a bell was heard, and then the room began to spin faster and faster. It spun so hard and so fast that a dull roar started to sound in Mindy’s ears, and she fell down to her knees in pain, throwing one hand up in an attempt to cover her ears. The other hand held steadfast onto the window ledge.

Letting the tears flow freely now, Mindy quickly bent into herself, audibly whimpering into her chest. 

“Please, please, please let me go back! I’m sorry I was acting so selfish. I’m sorry that I was being so mean! This isn’t what I wanted at all! Mom, Dad-”  
The room shook and spun angrily.

“I didn’t mean it at all-“

The wind howled in disgust and blew hard into the room around her.

“I’m sorry I acted that way-“

Mindy’s hand faltered for a moment, and an especially hard gust of air blew straight into her body.  
“I’m sorry!” she cried out, just before her eyes dully closed.

Mindy’s last thought was of her mother and father, before her entire world turned a dark, jet black.  
-  
When she woke up, a short bean-shaped creature was standing over her. He airily kicked at her shoulder. Around his waist was a thin belt covered in tools that shook with his movements.

In a gruff voice he said, “Well at least she’s not dead.”

Mindy felt disgusted by his remark, until the abrupt sound of cheering met her ears and rang out from all around her. She confusedly stared around her, as she moved to lug herself into a standing position. As far as she could tell, the discarded apartment room was now laying haphazardly on the ground. Everything was calm, the sun was shining brightly, and the cyclone was more than long gone; just a possible figment of her imagination in the far, far off distance. But this event was no figment of her imagination. Staring at the walls around her – or what was left of them – the inside of her room seemed a little worse for ware, but the fact that she was still alive from the tornado kept her from even pondering the thought of complaining. Beside her, the now much shorter bean-man held out a gloved hand for her even though his expression was a face of utter disinterest.

“Come along then. It’s time for your celebration,” the little guy droned.

“My celebration?” she asked.

Mindy curled up her nose in slight disgust, detesting the thought of touching his greasy gloves, but gingerly placed her small hand into his before allowing him to lead her through the nonexistent hallway wall of her apartment bedroom. As she passed through the threshold, her green eyes passed over the broken pipes and electrical wires, before her gaze came to rest in front of her and the light from the sun momentarily blinded her. Then, everything reverted back to normal, and she felt her eyes bug out in wonder.

Mindy gulped in fear.

“I’ve a feeling I’m not in San Francisco anymore.”

Colors of all sorts surrounded her. Little balls of red, yellow, green, blue, and purple grew out of flowers and along long vines. They sparkled within themselves and shone with a calm inner light. Amongst the round orbs, more bean-shaped beings stood in different spots, all staring at her in various degrees of unconcern and curiosity. A few looked on in amazement. Most of the weird creatures wore tools around their waists, as they looked between Mindy and their houses, unsure if they were supposed to stay or not. An air of awkwardness settled over the land now that Mindy was standing before them.

Immediately, Mindy felt the left corner of her mouth twitch at the pressure being brought on by the bean people’s stares. She started to sweat. It had been literally years since she had felt so much unwanted attention on her. The feeling both unnerved and disettled her. Suddenly taking in a breath, all while feeling very and indubitably confused, the taller girl forced out a hesitant grin. She blushed when a few of the bean people began to clap once more, much to her own puzzlement. As they cheered, the girl subconsciously grabbed at the bottom of her shorts in search of something familiar. Now she felt thoroughly embarrassed. 

Standing there in the middle of the miniscule, botanical town, Mindy paused, trying to siphon her slowly growing heart-rate. A sight disrupted her calming breaths. She almost let out a scream, as a golden light gently descended from the heavens. She watched in slight trepidation as the light came to land on a small patch of grass in front of her. A shoe broke through the bottom of the golden beam, and from the heart of the glowing star, a short girl daintily stepped out onto the earth, or what Mindy could only assume was earth. For all she knew, this place was Mars.

As Mindy gazed down at the short person, she discovered that the owner of the yellow light was in fact a child, who suddenly stood before her in an exquisitely beautiful, yet incredibly poufy honey-colored dress. 

Mindy felt an eye twitch at the absurdity of it all. A disgusted feeling settled in her stomach, and she suddenly wished that she was at home once more; at the home that she had once called her home, a place where life was calm and comforting, not confusing and different. A slight noise of repulsion left her, before she quickly clamped her mouth shut. There was no telling what this magical girl could do to her if she ever got angry and decided to use her magic on her…  
The little blond girl looked up at her, and Mindy was definitely sure that she did not want to find out.

After a moment, the young girl smiled. She held out a golden gloved hand to Mindy.

Inwardly cringing, the human girl eventually took hold of the appendage and shook it. She managed to muster up a fake smile which she sent to the shorter female.

“Welcome to the Core,” the child brightly spoke, “I am Riley. Riley, the Good Witch.”

Mindy mentally gawked at the name. A small shiver wracked down her spine. So this little girl was a witch, huh? A weak “Hi” was all that she could manage through her lips.

The Good Witch laughed a little, moving her hands down to pick up her skirt. She let a small hum leave her lips, and Mindy almost lost it at the uncanny tune. It was so familiar… The sound of it was almost like the tune of her favorite gum commercial, the one she used the listen to on repeat back in Florida. She watched on as the girl began to happily skip toward the broken piece of Mindy’s apartment.

“I would ask you for your name, but I already know who you are,” the witch offhandedly remarked.

Mindy stared, as the little girl stopped beside her apartment and bent down at the knees, staring at something. An almost melancholic expression clouded over her features. Then, she stood up on her toes and grinned conspiringly toward Mindy.

“Do you see those shoes?”

Mindy pursed her lips and glanced down beside the small room, suddenly gawking at the pair of emerald colored feet sticking out from under the busted up piece of her house.

“Oh. My. God. Are those feet?”

A horrified crack entered Mindy’s voice.

The Good Witch merely smiled, a minuscule twinkle entering her eye. With Mindy’s gaze on her, the witch gestured down to the shoes again, and Mindy followed her movements, gasping at the sight. Now, nothing sat crushed beneath her house.

Just as Mindy was about to say something else, her eyes landed on the tops of her feet, and she felt a scream bubble up in her throat. Beside her, the little girl chuckled.

“Don’t you think they’re beautiful? Yeah, they were my mother’s.”

Mindy almost passed out on the spot, but instead, she stared down at the girl as if she were crazy. She suddenly choked on her own tongue. A gagging noise escaped her. The thought of wearing a dead woman’s shoes, more so the pair that she had actually died in, was absolutely disgusting. From her spot near her, however, the Good Witch merely smiled in amusement.

“Honestly, they’re okay. I promise, Mindy. Besides, they’re magical! You can use them to get home.”

The girl abruptly stopped mid panic attack. 

“Home,” she heard herself wonder aloud.

The short female nodded and held out a hand. A few golden sparkles left her palm, before a long stick magically appeared in her hand.  
Narrowing her eyes, Mindy stared curiously at the object for a moment, before her mouth suddenly dropped open in distaste, and she turned up her nose at the offending stick. She could not believe this. Her father had been the only one in her family to even think about loving this sport.

“Is that a hockey stick?”

The Good Witch simply shrugged, her lips smirking gently. 

“Call it a family heirloom.”

She edged the stick toward Mindy, and the taller girl gently took it.

Her voice came out uneasily, as she gazed at the long piece of mahogany wood, “I-Is this magic too?”

The witch roared with laughter. She wiped at her eyes and chuckled, lacing her hands delicately over her skirt.

“No, no, but it’s a sturdy stick. It isn’t magical, but a person can never have one too many sticks while traveling on a tirelessly long journey.

The human let out a breath that she did not know she was holding.

She thoughtlessly responded, “Oh, well that’s kind of an odd gift, but okay.”

The Good Witch merely smiled in response and extended another hand to her. Mindy silently accepted it. Turning back to gaze at her bean-shaped people, the witch grinned and threw out her other hand beside her. A glow seemed to appear from within her soul, and she proudly addressed her subjects.

“Dear citizens of my sweet Core, hear my decree forevermore. The tyranny of her reign has come to an end, now a message to you, I surely do send. For her actions which forced all of us to just dread, the Wicked Old Mother, at last, is dead!”

Cheers suddenly erupted from all around her, and Mindy felt floored. Even the sourest of faces was clapping for her, as Mindy stood still in shock. The human had no idea how to feel about killing someone. She was confused overall, but a sick emotion had settled itself within her stomach. She was spoiled and vain, but she had never wanted to kill anyone. None of this had been her fault, and yet these people were acting as if she were their hero; a newfound celebrity in their small community of houses and strange orb flowers. The only solace that she found in her situation was that she had apparently performed a good deed for the bean people, even though it had been a complete accident on her part. 

As she stood there, a tiny civilian moved over to a flower and curiously pulled off a blue globe. He looked inside it, blinked momentarily, and walked slowly over to Mindy. He handed the ball over to her, making sure to give her a small thank you, and carefully stepped away. When she looked inside it, she saw herself looking at her cellphone, lying down to cry on her floor. A few tears edged the corners of her eyes. The witch gave her a small smile and put a hand out for the orb. When Mindy handed it to her, the orb gradually turned into a bright yellow, and she showed it a second time to the taller human.

It took her a moment to register what was going on in the orb, but Mindy smiled fondly once she recognized who was in the ball. A fresh, much happier wave of emotion washed over her. She could never forget the image of her best friends, smiling and laughing alongside her as they planned their last vacation together. Sniffling, the human girl let the kind child drop the orb into her palm.

“This is for you. Keep it with you during your travels.”

She tapped it, and the orb swallowed up into a tiny ball, “Just tap it, and the memory will enlarge.”

Mindy stared in wonder, cautiously tapping the outside shell of the memory. It grew back to its original size. Now curious, she turned to the witch with a confused gaze.

“How does this happen?” she asked.

The witch giggled. 

“Magic,” the Good Witch responded.

Unsurely, Mindy continued, “So, where is this place?”

The witch put a hand to her chin. She studiously took a few steps around the teenager, looking her up and down. She then nodded. “Yep, you’re our savior alright. You should be able to make it out alive... I believe so, anyway.”

“What do you mean?!” Mindy cried.

“Hush, hush,” the little girl suddenly shushed, “Off you go! Now do you see that colorful, little brick road beside us? The one will all of the different colored little stones? Yeah. Just take it, and you will eventually find your way to Imagination Land. Yayyy. There you shall face the Wizard, and you will click your heels together three times to go back to… wherever you’re from. See? Those pretty little emerald sparkles aren’t just for fashion’s sake; they are made of a powerful kind of magic, one that is strong enough to transport you home.”

Mindy blinked, glancing dubiously down at her shoes. Her slippers were both beautiful and powerful; an almost deadly combination. Her green eyes moved up to stare suspiciously toward the young witch. She wearily crossed her arms in front of her.

“Okay, something has to be up. First the flats, then the stick, and now the memory, apparently. Why are you doing this? Obviously you want some kind of payment, but I have nothing of any worth to you, so why don’t you just take everything back, and you can help me get home-“

“I want nothing in return.”

Mindy paused mid-sentence. 

The witch quickly continued on, “You have done us such a great service. My mother; you have no idea of what she has done, or of all the innocent people she has tortured in her life time. Please, my dear, I beg of you in earnest to take the shoes. They will help you on your journey up North, and I am truthful in my words. Just take the road of bricks, and you will find your way to the land of Imagination. Perils shall surely come into your path, but do not fret Mindy. You can win, but do not be afraid to seek help from others, as strangers shall be your greatest ally. Trust in others, and they shall lead you there.”

The human could only stare in trepidation. Slowly, she leant the long end of her hockey stick on the ground and looked toward the road. She swallowed down the thick feeling of fear in her throat.

“So,” her voice shook in a whisper, “all I have to do is follow this road?” 

The Good Witch dutifully nodded, “Correct.”

“And I will eventually make it to this… Imagination place.”

“Correctamundo.”

Mindy stared down at the endless road for a lengthy moment, before she finally sighed in resignation.

“Ugh, fine. But this better work! I swear, I hate walking.”

The Good Witch beamed and placed a gentle hand on the human’s back. She then pushed her softly toward the road, almost sweeping her forward with the force of her encouraging magic.

“Well, go on then. There is no time like the present. Good luck!”

Mindy grumbled, annoyed by the girl’s never-ending cheerfulness, but felt a thin grin form on her lips as she faced the kind child. She raised a hand and waved down to her one last time, before starting her long trek down the equally as long road. The bean-shaped people and the witch watched her in silence as she walked down the path. In one hand, she held on tight the tiny memory. In the other, the teen used her hockey stick as a walking cane, lazily dragging it on the brick beneath her.  
“I give her a week,” one of the memory miners droned.

“Hush,” the little girl pouted, pointing a finger in his direction.

A rainbow printed afro appeared on his head. He let out a muted scream. 

At his horrified expression, the witch she sent him a generous smile and let him see the mocking glint that had entered her eyes. She chuckled amusedly from behind her hand at him.

“I give your hair a week.”


	3. New Faces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a little bit of joy enters Mindy's life.

She had been walking for what seemed like miles, and her feet were killing her.

Mindy grumbled with each step.

“These. Shoes. Are. Hell.”

She almost tripped, as she attempted to angrily kick off her sparkling flats. A loud curse left her.  
“Dammit.”

Digging hotly at the back of her left shoe with her right toe, the girl let out a scream when she suddenly fell forward, spiraling down the short hill she was currently at the top of. A roaring scream pierced through her throat, as she came to a painful halt at the bottom of the brick laden hill. 

Mindy whimpered pitifully at the cuts and bruises that were sure to be forming on her arms and legs. She stared down at them for a moment, narrowing her eyes in silent anger, before steadily attempting to push herself up from the hard ground below her. An especially bad place on her leg was practically aching as her arms moved down to lift up her body. 

As the pain only continued to worsen, Mindy felt her eyes tear up. Her bottom lip began to tremble, and her face flinched at the pain. She winced with each movement, but finally managed to get herself standing in an upright position. Once she was stable, the girl stood there for a short minute simply staring out over the vast landscape laid before her. A lone tear cascaded down her cheek; nothing but a long road of colorful bricks and an abandoned corn field awaited her now.  
“Just great,” Mindy managed to mutter to herself crossly.

Taking another step forward, the short teenager sorely made her way down the colored brick road bit by tiny bit. With every step, she let out a heavy breath and continued to verbally curse her very existence.

“Stupid. Freaking. Freak. Tornadoes.”

Mindy glared down at the various colored bricks in front of her as she wearily trudged along. Her shoulders drooped downward in dejection. She was terribly exhausted now. 

As her pretty, sparkly green shoes ambled on down the road, Mindy kept a small mantra in her head. Red, yellow, purple, blue, green; repeat. Red, yellow, purple, blue, green; repeat. The pattern ingrained itself in her senses, and the teen closed her eyes as she walked, instantly seeing the ingrained image materialize mentally in her mind’s eye. Suddenly, the girl felt like going to sleep. Then, an odd thought struck her. Perhaps the bricks would feel more comfortable to her if she laid out some corn stalks on it, like if she were making a bed? Surely there would be no one out there to catch her-

Just as the crazy thought had entered Mindy’s mind, she heard a voice. Her ears perked up in interest. The uninhibited sound of melodic singing could be heard ringing in the far off distance, filling the air and pulling her forward, and her feet steadily began to move in earnest. Suddenly, the girl let out a whooping laugh at her luck. 

Running unevenly with her heels clicking hellishly against the hard stones beneath her feet, Mindy’s mind immediately traveled back to what the Good Witch had told her about trusting strangers. Maybe this is what the small child had meant. Perhaps this voice was not a mirage, but a real person; a kind and amazing person who could perhaps aid her plight by graciously leading her further in the direction of the infamous Imagination Land.

“I can’t,” Mindy gasped, “believe it.”

Mindy could feel herself huffing and puffing out of exhaustion. As she quickly neared the carefree owner of the voice, the girl could practically hear her own heart singing along with it. Oh god, the voice was so beautiful and happy; so melodious and sweet. A true gem amongst a lonely and foreboding cornfield. A sense of absolute joy filled Mindy, as she closed in on the voice, and she let out a mental whoop once the voice was in easy speaking distance. There came the sound of corn moving in her wake, and the song ended abruptly. Her footsteps halted. 

The sudden quiet unnerved Mindy, and she paused on the road. Her gaze hesitantly traveled upward. The fact that she now found herself to be all alone, only standing in the presence of a lone scarecrow was discomforting. It stared down at her, thoroughly freaking her out. Suddenly, her mouth ran very dry.

Still, the girl found herself speaking out into the silence, “Hello? Is anyone there?”

The creepy feeling of being watched had Mindy glancing back and forth between the cornfield and the scarecrow that was hanging high above her on a rusty, old nail. It hung limply. An odd emotion entered her stomach. Now doubtfully regarding its face, the teen could not get over its expression. The humanlike quality that she found within its eyes; it edged at her thoughts and forced her to have doubts about this so called ‘scarecrow’, and this is what disturbed her more than anything.  
Mindy blinked unsurely. Then, she outwardly questioned her sanity. 

“There really was a voice… right? But where did it come from?”

Another lengthy silence ensued, and the girl finally shook her head at herself. Grumbling, she began to tread away from the lonely scarecrow.

“God, I must be going crazy now. First I’m hearing voices. What’s next, seeing ghosts?”

The human subconsciously paused in her steps, some unknown sentiment drawing her attention back onto the scarecrow. Thoughtlessly, she glanced over her shoulder. She stared at the scarecrow as it sat there in a silent and sad position. Her face settled downward into a pitying expression, but deftly left her when she noticed the way that its head now hung in a turned position, almost as if it had turned to watch her go…

Immediately, Mindy took a hurried step behind her.

“Wow. I might be feeling a tad crazy right now, but that is creepy.” 

She gazed over at the offending scarecrow in distrust. 

Sighing to herself, Mindy somewhat mumbled a thought. 

“I just wish that the beautiful voice would come back.“

“Why thank you!”

Mindy blinked, looking up twice at the scarecrow, before she noticed that the figure had moved its head into a human-like position to stare straight into her gaze. A bright twinkle shone in the scarecrow’s beaded blue eyes. A tight, burlap sack smile spread its way across its almost feminine lips, and the creature unwaveringly held Mindy’s gaping orbs. It took the scarecrow a moment of silent staring, before it finally shook its head and hastily gestured to itself with a straw hand. As it moved, the long, flowing yellow sundress that the scarecrow wore stirred also.

“Hi, there. I’m Joy. Ya know, the owner of the beautiful voice? Yeah. I’m sorry that I didn’t speak to you before, but I’m just not too used to having that many people coming through here - or any at all - to be honest. Life gets a little boring when you’re out living on your own in a cornfield, and it’s kind of isolating, but I think it’s nice to keep on smiling. Plus, there are many crows to keep one company-”  
She paused momentarily, screwing up her face in thought.

“Too bad they don’t like to offer much conversation. It seems they all have a tiny case of birdbrain. Ha-ha!”

The scarecrow - apparently named Joy - laughed at her own bad joke and wiggled herself around uselessly. The urge for her to get off of her stalk and talk to the girl on solid ground was almost overwhelming. 

Unfortunately, no matter what Joy did, the living scarecrow was unable to bump herself off of her perch from above the corn stalks. A sad quiver shook her bottom lip.

“Drat,” she regrettably sighed.

Just as Joy was about to give up, the bright bell of living hay suddenly noticed Mindy’s hockey stick in her hand and let out an audible cheer. Her limp body jolted, and she wiggled around like a child, excitedly reaching for the piece of wood. She almost felt greedy, as she grinned at Mindy with a sense of uncontained joy. The girl instantly froze. 

From her spot below the scarecrow, Mindy could only stare in slight terror, as the scarecrow reached out for her, her mouth open in horror. She bit at a scream and swallowed it down, as a coarse, heavy breathing noise erupted from her throat. She wheezed. The teen was petrified.

Unfortunately, Joy failed to notice her fear. All she could think about was the wondrous thought of the beautiful and kind human girl helping her down, the subjugated soul whose only wish was to be free of her ever-rotting perch. The scarecrow had been placed on it years ago.  
“The stick-“

Joy attempted to speak through her joy.

“I-“

Mindy took a guarded step behind her.

“No. No-no-no. Help-“

The human glanced around herself to see if someone was near them. The only thing that Mindy saw was a road and a couple, hundred-thousand stalks of corn. The sight of it both went on for miles and miles. Unsurely, she looked back to the scarecrow. The teen watched as the scarecrow swallowed down her delight, barely getting out her next words.

“Help me!”

Mindy paused in her fleeing.

“Help?” she questioned her, staring up at the strange creature. 

The scarecrow aggressively nodded. 

“What do you mean help?”

Joy raised her gaze to the heavens and smiled, swallowing at her enthusiasm, before returning her stare downward to the human below her. Her brows moved upward, a pleading expression making its way onto her burlap face.

“Your stick; I need your stick. Please, please take me down from this place. I’ve been stuck here for years.”

Mindy let out a hard scoff, not believing her current situation. The girl was talking to a scarecrow, and the scarecrow was talking to her.  
“Why would I help you? How do I know that you won’t eat me or anything?”

The scarecrow laughed as if this was the funniest thing that she had ever heard.

Chuckling, she playfully answered, “Well one, I have no stomach, so that would be a really pointless action. Why a scarecrow would ever even consider trying to eat a human is beyond me. Two, I am definitely not evil... I couldn’t even hurt a fly. Besides, I’m sure you probably taste nasty-”

A small look of offence graced Mindy’s features. Even though this was exactly what she had wanted to hear, the teen could not help but feel slightly offended. The scarecrow immediately backtracked on her statement.

“I-If you want to taste nasty. I mean, who knows, maybe you taste good? I mean, I’m sure that you taste good in some light. I guess I’m just heavily heavily human-intolerant. The fact that I’m made out of straw probably doesn’t help me, because no organs means that I have no digestive track. Therefore, I have no need to use the bathroom, or sleep, or eat-“

Mindy hastily stomped over to where she was beneath the scarecrow and cocked her hip. Sighing exasperatedly, she lifted her arms so that the hockey stick was directly behind Joy’s neck.

“Ugh, will you please shut up?” she yelled, attempting to hook the long end of stick in the small loop right behind her collar.  
The scarecrow instantly brightened. She mentally rejoiced at the feel of the stick moving against her neck. She was so sure that this girl would be able to remove her from her peg. 

“Yay!”

Mindy huffed, struggling to get it through the hole. A growl erupted from her throat.

“I am helping you against my better judgement,” she grumpily muttered, her eyes glancing up at the scarecrow through her lashes, “So you better not be some crazy axe murderer or something, because so help me god, I will come back from the dead and haunt your pretty little a-“

“Aww, you think it’s pretty?” Joy smiled brightly, totally overjoyed at the idea of this girl becoming her friend, “Also, for your information, I am as far from being an axe murderer as you are from being my height, so don’t you worry your pretty little head about that. Blood grosses me out.”

“I’ll keep that in mind” Mindy wheezed, once the stick finally made it through the loop. 

Tirelessly, the girl tried to lift the stranger off of her ledge. Eventually, she managed to wedge her stick under the loop, and the fabric slipped over the rusted nail. Mindy rattled, as she threw her arm exhaustedly to the side. Joy hopped down onto the ground with a yell. A giant smile lit her face.  
She directly pulled her in for a hug.

“Ew-ew-ew, so gross!”

Mindy pushed off Joy, skipping a step backward. She brought both of her hands in front of her to wipe them feverishly on her shirt. She groaned mournfully when the image of her dirty prints left a dark brown stain on her clothes. Disgust was painted on her features, as she struggled to rid her shirt of Joy’s loving filth, and all her hands did was spread the offensive dirt further down her attire.

Feeling sheepish, the scarecrow shook her head at herself. She shrugged happily.

“Sorry there. I got carried away a bit.” 

Although Joy had apologized to her, Mindy was unable to hear her words over the sound of her own vain complaining.  
“Ugh, so much dirt!” 

Joy’s brain suddenly had an idea. 

“Oh! Good thing that I know a shortcut to a great lake, then!”

This caught Mindy’s attention, and the short teen merely glared up at Joy. The scarecrow grinned unwaveringly, as she crossed her arms condescendingly toward her.

“Um, excuse me, but I need to stay on this road. I’m heading toward Imagination Land-” 

Joy promptly paused, her ears perking in interest.

“-A witch told me that I could get home if I went there, so I’m off to see the Wizard.”

Joy almost felt her heart sing when she heard the human’s plight… Too bad she did not have one.

“Well if that’s true, then you have certainly found your guide!”

The scarecrow skipped, grabbing ahold of the Mindy’s arm. The teen blanched.

As Joy’s hand made contact with Mindy’s skin, Mindy shuddered in disgust. Her face scrunched up in agony, practically feeling the years of grim rub off onto her now grubby clothes. It did not help that her leg still hurt. The poor girl groaned helplessly, resignedly closing her eyes, as the scarecrow skillfully looped their arms together and began to pull her forward. She watched as Joy forced a path for them through the cornfield.

Mindy’s eyes widened in panic. She felt frustrated as her feet straggled ungracefully behind Joy. The latter could only grin in determination. The pair of strangers were deviating from the original path, but maybe that was okay. The Good Witch had said for Mindy to trust in strangers, after all, and that is what she would do; cringing the entire way, albeit, very unwillingly.

“Are you sure you know where you’re going?” she asked, worriedly calling from behind Joy.

The scarecrow purely grinned. She craned her neck to gaze back at the girl over her shoulder.

“Of course I do, trust me!”

Mindy raised a brow at that, and her feet tripped over a fallen corn stalk. She gave Joy a disbelieving stare. Then, she took a glance behind her and gazed back at the colorful road that was steadily being left behind them. She watched with bated breath, as it was eventually covered by green stalks. 

Crossly, she yelled, “But why do I feel like I shouldn’t?”

Swiftly, the scarecrow backpedaled. She stopped mid-run, physically turning to look back at the teen. She could clearly see the doubt shining in Mindy’s eyes. Immediately, she tightened her hand around the human girl’s hand. Joy hoped that the action was comforting.

“Look, you... whatever your name is. We will get you home. I promise that I know where I’m going. Also, and here is a little tidbit that you should probably know about me: when I make a promise, I never ever go back on that promise.”

Mindy gave her a bored stare.

Joy carefully squeezed her hand a second time. 

“Ever.”

Taking a long moment, the girl stared up at her in quiet thought. Finally, she let out a dramatic sigh.

“AHHHGH! All right. All right, you have my trust.”

Mindy threw her hand out and shooed the scarecrow forward, “Just go on with the whole stupid running and grinning thing.”

Joy practically felt herself jump for joy.

“Now that’s the spirit! Believe me, we will get you to Imagination Land. With me leading you, there is no possible way we could get lost!”


End file.
